Position
Academic Background
Sample Courses
Teaching Philosophy
Research & Interests    
Publication Highlights
          Selected Scholarly Presentations      

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Position            

• Assistant Professor of Sociology

Academic Background        

• Penn State University - Ph.D. in Crime, Law, and Justice
• Penn State University - M.A. in Crime, Law, and Justice
• Drew University - B.A. in Psychology

Sample Courses Taught at Providence College   

• Introduction to Sociology
• Criminology
• Special topics courses in conflict and violence and domestic violence

Teaching Philosophy            

Teaching is not about presenting facts to memorize but about opening a door for a student to seek understanding. Teaching students how to learn and how to enjoy learning is the quest of a good teacher. I use this approach to both help my students understand the material and why it matters. Above all, a teacher must possess a passion for learning in order to pass it on to her students. Only a teacher who constantly seeks to learn more can learn from her own mistakes and from her students. 

Research & Interests               

The majority of my research concerns victims of crime; my most recent work examines risk factors in domestic violence victimization. I also have a strong interest in the structural and cultural factors that affect crime on a societal level, such as inequality and intolerance. Several students have shared with me conversations they have had with roommates, friends, and family regarding the topics we cover in class.

Publication Highlights

• Outlaw, Maureen, R. Barry Ruback, and Chester Britt. (2002) “Repeat and Multiple Victimizations: The Role of Individual and Contextual Factors.” Violence and Victims, 17(3), 187-204.
• Outlaw, Maureen, and R. Barry Ruback. (1999) "Predictors and Outcomes of Victim Restitution Orders." Justice Quarterly, 16(4), 847-69.
• Ruback, R. Barry, Kim Menard, Maureen Outlaw, and Jennifer Shaffer. (1999). “Normative Advice to Campus Crime Victims: Effects of Gender, Age and Alcohol.”  Violence and Victims, 14 (4), 381-96.

Selected Scholarly Presentations and Activities

• “Children as a gateway: Criminal opportunities for Domestic Violence by Ex-Spouses.”  Paper presented at the annual meeting of the American Society of Criminology, Nashville, TN, November, 2004.
• “Neighborhood context, Routine activities, and intimate violence: An investigation of the interplay of individual and contextual risk factors for spousal violence.” Roundtable presentation at the annual meeting of the American Society of Criminology, Denver, CO, November, 2003.
• “The marriage license as a controlling license?: Control as a particular risk for spousal violence. Paper presented at the annual meeting of the American Society of Criminology, Chicago, IL, November, 2002.
• Working to establish a chapter of Alpha Kappa Delta, the national honor society in sociology, at Providence College.

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